Last spring the writing business was slow so I signed up for some temp work. At my first assignment my rather plump boss wore childish dark jumpers with white blouses and pantyhose. The blouses must have been too small because her pillowy cleavage stretched gaps between the buttons.

She wheezed when she inhaled and exhaled. Heavy in the thighs, as she walked down the hall, her pantyhose would go, "swish swish swish." Her unattractive, graceless body would have been merely unfortunate if it weren't also a launching pad for sarcasm and bureaucratic tediousness.

Thanks to the traffic and parking in downtown Louisville, I was five minutes late. When I introduced myself, she wheezed: "I was wondering if you were coming today."

Her sniping aside, the assignment looked promising, even cushy. Comfortable ergonomic chairs sat in front of gleaming desks of dark, fake wood. Sitting on th...
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Intro: At a temporary agency assignment, it's important to work at the level expected by your supervisor. Essayist Michael Jackman recalls a recent temp job and how he learned to meet that standard.